Pakistan Attack Round-Up

THE Indian authorities yesterday claimed to have proof that the Mumbai terrorists were receiving instructions from Pakistan and discussing tactics with their handlers during the three days of attacks in which they killed at least 195 people.

The claims threaten further to embitter relations between the two nuclear powers. Tensions have been high since confirmation that the only captured gunman was a 21-year-old Pakistani.

It has also emerged that India had been warned that terrorists were planning an attack in Mumbai.

As war becomes more likely, the ISI, which likely trained these terrorists, actually becomes more powerful, not less. Because in a war, Pakistan would no doubt want to coordinate even more terrorist attacks in India, and the ISI has all of them on speed-dial. The Pakistan government could not afford to dismantle the ISI as war looms, even if they were inclined to. (And they seem not so inclined.)

Thus the ISI profits from its terror-sponsoring and murder.

The ISI can only be stopped by some kind of serious threat of war with the ultimatum that the dismemberment of the ISI is the price of peace, or a truly painful, humiliating, and disastrous war for Pakistan. And there is a limit to how much a country can defeat a nuclear-armed country -- Pakistan would presumably not use nukes if their were some small scale retaliation. But a determined war effort that defeated their army and invited invasion presumably would put the nuke option on the table.

I don't believe the current Indian government has the mettle for either. The train bombing from a year ago killed 200 and there was no war.

But the less-pacifistic Hindu National Party is already running ads castigating the ruling Congress Party for their fecklessness.